Aish.com Features Kind Letter to Sarah Palin Prominently On Front Page!

[Lewinsky Stinks, Dr. Brennan Rocks]

  http://www.aish.com/family/mensch/An_Open_Letter_to_Sarah_Palin.asp 
(note: italics are not added)

From one parent of a child with Down syndrome to another.
by Rabbi Nechemia Coopersmith


Dear Governor Palin,

I'm sure you're pretty busy juggling your home and new baby, the state of Alaska and running for vice president. But I thought a few words of advice are in order, from one parent of a child with Down syndrome to another. This is one area in which I've got four years more experience than you.

1. First of all, a belated mazel tov! You and your family will get tons of joy and nachas from Trig. Of the cases of Down syndrome diagnosed by prenatal testing each year, about 90% are eliminated by abortion. I bet most of those parents would choose otherwise if they knew the tremendous blessing entailed in raising such a child.

Enjoy all of his the triumphs, big and small. Our son Yehuda just started kindergarten; he is included in a regular class in one of Jerusalem's best schools. He speaks two languages, is learning the Hebrew alphabet, and is excited to be going to the same school as his two older brothers.

Trig is not defined by his disability; he is first and foremost a person like anyone else.   
 
2. Realize that Trig is not defined by his disability; he is first and foremost a person like anyone else. Every person has a unique mission and purpose in this world. Trig does too, and your job as his mother is to help him bring out his full potential, whatever that may be.

3. Don't put a limit on Trig's potential and sell him short. Expect the most. As his best advocate, inculcate in him and in those around you the belief that with hard work and determination, Trig can do anything, until proven otherwise. Don't confuse accepting him as he is with resignation.

4. Don't feel sorry for him because he has a disability. Treat him like your other children, setting limits, giving discipline and lots of love.

5. Trig needs loads of early intervention that will strengthen his muscles and work his brain. Get started on this immediately. Too busy campaigning? Make sure Todd or some primary caregiver is spending hours a day working with him. Everything you do now pays off in the end.

6. Trig is going to have greater needs than everyone else in your family. But be sure not to neglect your husband and other kids (good advice for anyone running for vice president). Making sure your marriage stays strong and vibrant is your top priority.

7. Appreciate his strengths -- chances are he'll have an awareness of people's feelings and a compassion streak far greater than other kids his age. But don't overcompensate and turn Trig into some kind of saint. He's just a boy, with strengths and weaknesses like everyone else.

8. Things go a lot slower for a kid who has Downs. In order to enter Trig's world you're going to need an abundance of patience and force yourself to slow down. If you don't have that trait now, start developing it. God doesn't make mistakes; He gives us the specific challenges we need to bring out our own potential. You need Trig as much as he needs you. His birth can be a catalyst for personal growth for you and your entire family.

Your nomination has already challenged people's perception of Down syndrome. Whether you win or lose, we look forward to great strides in the advancement of benefits for the disabled everywhere.

With thanks to Gershon Lewis and Chaya Malka Abramson, two inspiring parents of children with Downs.

[Shamgar]

Letters like this make be feel really good. That there are good parents out there that really love thier children and will sacrifice for them is the glue that bonds together the family unit that God put in place.

The problems of today's society stem from parents not raising their children and giving them the love and the punishment that they need to grow up healthy and a benefit to society instead of a burden. 

It doesn't take a villiage to raise a child, it takes a mom and a dad.

[Lisa]

How long do people with Down's Syndrome live? 

I just worry about what will happen to disabled people once their parents die. 

[Lewinsky Stinks, Dr. Brennan Rocks]

They often have shorter-than-normal lifespans (50-60 years) due to heart defects.

[muman613]

Shalom,

I love Aish.com.... They receive a lot of support from me every year. I am about to give them another donation this year. I am one of their big supporters {they call me to solicit money from time to time}.

Aish IS AWESOME!

muman613

[Lewinsky Stinks, Dr. Brennan Rocks]

I wish Aish would put back their e-cards though. I really miss them.

[Lisa]

So can people with Down's Syndrome care for themselves?  What happens when their parents are no longer around? 

[Americanhero1]

So can people with Down's Syndrome care for themselves?  What happens when their parents are no longer around? 

they can I worked with a guy who had Down's Syndrome and he was 32 years old he did most thing people who do not have Down's Syndrome can

[muman613]

I wish Aish would put back their e-cards though. I really miss them.

Shalom,

Yes, I am surprised they removed them. I just scoured the site looking for the Holiday Greeting Card page and it seems they got rid of it...

muman613

[Rubystars]

It depends on how severe or mild the disorder is whether they can care for themselves. There are a lot of resources out there to help though. Sometimes some kids with Downs and other disabilities come into the store I work at and help straighten up a little. They get bored easily but the focus isnt so much on the work they do but giving them the experience of doing some work so it will help them to develop as people. One of them is a real joker, he's always kidding around with one of the social workers. I think he enjoys coming out with the group and working on stuff with them.

[Lewinsky Stinks, Dr. Brennan Rocks]

Rubystars is correct; in all cases DS involves the trisomy (a triple copy, instead of the normal double copy) of human chromosome (it's either 18 or 21, I forget which one), but the severity of the impact of that varies tremendously. Some Down's patients are severely retarded; others are virtually normal in aptitude. Sometimes the characteristic Down's features are very pronounced; in other cases, they do not really affect the appearance all that much. There was a Down's girl at a church I once attended and she was, quite literally, smokin' hot. She had a very sharp memory and conversed very well (she did have some deficits, as she attended a "special school", but I never got to learn exactly what those were), and she was physically downright stunning--she merely appeared to have Asian-like features.

What is pretty unavoidable is some degree of internal organ compromise in DS patients (usually the heart, sometimes other organs too) and premature aging (they have menopause sooner, develop senile dementia sooner, and in general have shorter lifespans by about 25 years). However, the abnormal third 21st chromosome makes them extremely resistant to cancers, for some reason (they have about a tenth of the cancer rate of the genotypically normal population, if I recall correctly).

[Lisa]

So what happens to the people who have the extreme Down's symptoms when their parents are no longer around? 

[Rubystars]

They need to have assisted living in some way. Sometimes there are homes set up for people like that, which of course can be good or bad.

[Americanhero1]

They need to have assisted living in some way. Sometimes there are homes set up for people like that, which of course can be good or bad.

The homes they set up they have people with the same needs that live there

[Lewinsky Stinks, Dr. Brennan Rocks]

Generally DS patients with severe cases don't have especially long lifespans, but in any event, they would need institutionalized care like any other severely-handicapped person.

[Lisa]

Generally DS patients with severe cases don't have especially long lifespans, but in any event, they would need institutionalized care like any other severely-handicapped person.

That's sad.